New old 1998 corolla

[bigwillfrisco]

Hello folks,
I have a toyota corolla that I got as a gift with 148k miles on it.
Got it at 138k and its run like a champ ever since then.
Although I am on a tight budget I would like to know if there is anything I should check or replace ONLY in the case that if it broke in the future it would cost much more to fix or damage other things. (i've heard people say that if certain belts break, they can damage the engine.)

I had the car taken to a reputable garage for a pretty thorough inspection. Other than minor things I've done due to their recommendiation, they said the timing chain cover leaks oil and it should eventually be resealed and this will be between $600 - $1300 (5-6 hours labor plus parts.) Is this important to fix, is this an example of something that will be a much bigger problem if it brakes in the future?

(Also posted this forum in the new member forum.)

Thank you for your help.
-Will

[pdq]

There's no timing belt, only a timing chain on this car. So you don't need to worry about it breaking and destroying your engine head...

You should track how much oil you are losing. 1 liter or less / 3000 miles is average, more than 1 liter/1000 miles is bad.

Unless you are in the bad category, you may want to just keep topping off the oil level every few times you fill up gas.

You can easily replace your PCV valve for < $10 (no tools needed). These are common to get clogged up. I'd also recommend changing your valve cover gasket if you are handy and have a basic set of sockets and about 90 minutes.

As long as you maintain the car (oil changes, etc), you should expect to get a long life out of the car.

[bigwillfrisco]

ok great, thanks for the advice, that seems like a good way to measure weather or not the leak is as bad as they say it is. So I really don;t know much about cars but I want to learn more, when u say oil changes etc., Im assuming you mean the stuff listed in the different scheduled maintenances in the manual right?
-Will

[leakyseals]

with this vintage corolla, the majority of the problems come from neglecting the oil. On some cars you can get away with it, not on these. Don't pinch pennies on the oil, use a synthetic and change it on time.

[pdq]

Frisco, you may also want to add changing the transmission fluid and the power steering fluid to the maintenance schedule. My power steering fluid was black after 100k miles.

[FlawedLegacy]

be sure to check the headlight fluid!!

j/k, but sounds like they got the most of it.

[bigwillfrisco]

Thanks for all your help! Yes, think I should change the power steering fluid, the guy at penzoil said it was very dirty, thought he might have been just trying to get business, but I imagine if I check it myself it'll be true.

A mechanic recommended I change the belt drive due to very slight beginings of cracking. Is the type of thing that if it breaks, will cause lots of damage??

[pdq]

If the drive belt breaks loose, you will lose power to air conditioning, power steering, alternator (ie battery charging), and possibly the water pump (I can't recall). It will be quite obvious if it breaks, and not catastrophic.

Usually you change them either if you can see visual cracking on the belt ribs, or if it's squealing. They are a 5 minute change out if you rent a serpentine tool from Autozone. The belt is about $25.

For the power steering, you need to siphon the fluid out and refill with new fluid multiple times to change it out. You can buy a syringe at Walgreens or something like a turkey baster to suck the fluid out. If you want to really clean it out, you need to remove the reservoir and clean out the filter with brake cleaner. I believe it's 1 bolt plus removing the two hoses to do that.

[bigwillfrisco]

Ok,

Thanks all for your help, it's greatly appreciated!!!! I get the overall idea that these fixes will be good when I have time and money but that none of them are of crucial current importance.

[WTFseabass]

dont ever take your car to a mechanic for an oil change, it is prob. one of the most easiest maintenance to do on your car.